Sixth seed Marin Cilic and second seed Roger Federer lock horns in the final of the 2018 Australian Open on Sunday morning (8.30am UK Time). Who will be victorious at the Rod Lever Arena? This article contains our Cilic vs Federer betting preview, with free predictions, betting tips, best odds, exclusive offers and no deposit bonuses on Australian Open Final 2018.

MARIN CILIC v ROGER FEDERER BETTING PREVIEW

Marin Cilic beat Kyle Edmund in straight sets in the semifinal. Prior to that, he managed to defeat world number 1 Rafael Nadal in the quarterfinals (3-6, 6-3, 6-7 (5-7), 6-2, 2-0) via retirement and 10th seed Pablo Carreno Busta 6-7 (2-7), 6-3, 7-6 (7-0), 7-6 (7-3). The Croatian has won 9 of his 10 matches so far this year, all on a hard surface, with only Gilles Simon able to beat him so far. Cilic has double-digit aces in all six of his matches and will need to serve at his best in order to have a chance to beat Federer. Certainly fatigue should not be a factor for either player. Cilic does have an advantage with the extra day off but his opponent only played one set and half against Chung in the semifinal.

Roger Federer only had to play one and half sets before Hyeon Chung retired in the semifinal. The Swiss Maestro was leading 6-1 5-2 when Chung, who was struggling with blisters and had earlier had treatment on his left foot, threw in the towel. This means Federer has progressed to his 30th grand slam final and he can now match Novak Djokovic and Roy Emerson’s record of six Australian Open titles. He has not lost a set so far in 2018, having defeated Aljaz Bedene, Jan Lennard Struff, Richard Gasquet, Marton Fucsovics and Thomas Bedene in straight sets on his way to the semifinal.

These two met in last year’s Wimbledon final, where Roger Federer proved far too classy beating Cilic in straight sets. They last met in the ATP Tour Finals 2017, with the Croatian taking the first set off Federer before the Swiss overpowered him to win in three sets. As a consequence, Rogers has a 8-1 career record against the Croatian. Cilic's only win came in the semi-final of the US Open in 2014, when he actually won it in straight sets before beating Kei Kishikori in the final.

AUSTRALIAN OPEN - MARIN CILIC v ROGER FEDERER BEST ODDS

The following are the highest odds on the Cilic v Federer match at time of writing:

New Customers only. Up to £100 in Bet Credits. Sign up, deposit £5 or more to your account and bet365 will match your qualifying deposit in Bet Credits when you place qualifying bets to the same value and they are settled. Min odds/bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude Bet Credits stake. T&Cs, time limits & exclusions apply.

Only available to new customers from UK & Northern Ireland. You must stake £10 or more at single/cumulative odds of Evens (2.0) or greater on your first bet. Free bet balance of £30 credited within 48 hours of your first bet being settled. Free Bets expire after 7 days. E-Wallet restrictions apply. Minimum 5 game rounds. Game restrictions apply. Maximum 30 Free Spins on selected games. Free Spins expire after 7 days. Full T&Cs apply.

Bet £10 Get £30. New William Hill online customers only. Min. unit stake of £10/€10 at odds of 1/2 or greater. Only the “win” part from EW bets will count. Free bet terms, payment method & country restrictions apply. Free bets credited as 3 x £10/€10. Free bet stakes are not returned as part of the settlement of successful free bets. All Free Bets must be wagered within 30 days.